Manchester United are reportedly interested in Ben Godfrey and are looking to engineer a summer move for the Norwich City star in the summer transfer window.
The Sun report that Manchester United have added Ben Godfrey to their long list of summer shopping spree as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer eyes a squad overhaul at the club. The Norwich star reportedly comes highly recommended by former United star-turned-pundit Rio Ferdinand, with Godfrey a client of the Ferdinand-owned New Era Sports Management Agency.
Ben Godfrey is not a new name to be linked with Manchester United. The Red Devils have been rumoured to be taking a keen look at the youngster for a while now, with Arsenal and Liverpool other Premier Leagues named as a potential suitors for the Norwich City defender earlier.
The 21-year-old managed to break into the Norwich City first-team squad this season after a successful 2017-18 campaign out on loan to Shrewsbury Town. Godfrey took to Championship football like a fish to water and sealed his place in the starting eleven at Carrow Road.
Norwich have won the Championship and earned a promotion to the Premier League, with Godfrey coming in clutch at the back and with his contribution on the other end as well – 4 goals and 2 assists in the league. The player now has Premier League clubs watching, with Manchester United keen on the 21-year-old.
The Red Devils are crestfallen and how after their second-placed finish in the 2017-18 campaign and are on course to miss Champions League football for the upcoming season. Defence has been the area of concern for Manchester United, with no defender apart from Victor Lindelof putting in consistently good performances.
The latest humiliation was a 1-1 draw at already relegated Huddersfield, which all but confirmed their exit from the top four race. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has admitted that there will be a lot of movement both ways for United in the summer transfer window and central defence will be one the key areas that the manager must improve, despite earlier reports that stated Solskjaer was to ignore the position and reinforce in other problem areas.
At £15 million, Ben Godfrey could be a bargain deal; one that Manchester United used to do a lot of under Sir Alex Ferguson. The 21-year-old has had back-to-back solid seasons in defence at different levels of English football and has already proven he can adjust to the step up.
While the Norwich star will not be expected to be a starter from the get-go, he could be useful as a squad rotation player from the time he joins Manchester United. The 21-year-old is also a right-footed centre-back and will pair in nicely with Victor Lindelof, should he be able to impress Solskjaer enough to hand him a key role in his first season itself.
Solskjaer has seen closely just how big the gap is between the likes of Liverpool and Manchester City to his squad right now. After years of chasing superstar signings, Godfrey could be the first step in the right direction for the manager and the club.
